Several publications are available detailing the seafaring feats of Bartolomeu Dias & Vasco da Gama. Similarly, a number of publications have investigated the Khoikhoin. Very little attention has, however, been given to the meeting of these two cultures at the southern tip of Africa.

The publications of Eric Axelson and WJ de Kock - the leading South African authors on the Portuguese seafarers - served as basis for this book. In addition, extensive use has been made of a range of sources from authors with varying backgrounds, points of departure and interests. The combination of the information gleaned from these sources has allowed Ferreira to shed additional light on the meeting and clash of the two cultures.

This book tells the story of mistrust and misunderstandings which arose not only from a lack of communication but also from deep-rooted differences in world-views. The negative views that the Khoikhoin and the Portuguese had of each other was likely of such a nature that it is amazing that it did not result in full-scale acts of aggression. This was partly due to the Portuguese authorities' directive to their seafarers to avoid confrontation with local cultures. It is also likely that the peaceful nature of both cultures contributed to this in large measure.

From a cultural-historic perspective the first meeting between the widely differing cultures of the Portuguese and the Khoikhoin provides interesting reading regarding a bygone era in the common history of all South Africans. Additionally it provides an opportunity to apply lessons from that period to the present time-frame within which a multicultural society like South Africa finds itself.

The book comprises 101 pages, divided into the following broad sections: